Well, this is
our first trip away in 2021, seven and a half months since we were last
away. During that time so much has happened, not only to the UK, but to
the rest of the world. If it had not all been so tragic it would have
made a good story line for a dystopian novel. ( just as an aside
Margaret has just started to read a Peter May novel called Lockdown, not
really to do with COVID but along similar lines and written six years
ago!!!) COVID has confined many,
including us, to barracks, for virtually months on end. Whilst many will
analyse what went wrong, who was to blame the one miracle to emerge from
the chaos were the various vaccines that started to be administered at
around the turn of the year. We have both had two doses of the AZ
vaccine which we hope will keep us safe. But having said that it has not
gone away. As I write there are increasing concerns about a variant of
the virus from India which is spreading fast in certain communities
which may yet undo all the good work achieved so far. I think what
annoys those of us who have done so much to protect ourselves is that
our Government has not acted quickly and decisive enough to close
certain borders to stop the spread of the disease.
From reading
many caravan/motorhome forums it seems that many couldn’t wait to get
away once campsites opened on 12 April. Understandable I suppose as
people have felt that have been locked away for so long! We took a
slightly longer view and waited until three weeks after our second
vaccination. Not wishing to venture too far we decided on the Caravan
and Motorhome Club site in Morton in Marsh which is only a little over
50 miles from home. We had booked a three-night stay to get us back in
the swing of things.
Tuesday 25th May and time to set off. May has been an
exceptionally wet month and no doubt will prove to be one of the wettest
on record so we had both fingers crossed that the last days of May might
be better. As we were ready to leave it still seemed pretty damp but
once on the road out towards Buckingham there were encouraging signs of
it brightening up. En route we made, what is becoming, a regular coffee
stop at Buzzy Beans mobile coffee shop between Adderbury and Deddington.
We arrived at the site about quarter past midday. Due to COVID
precautions check in was a bit more complicated than usual but well
organised. Margaret didn’t like the first pitch so she set off to find
another! We are in a little cul de sac of eight or nine units. There
have been many complaints about the size of the pitches on this site but
it seems this little section, at least, has been refurbished. They have
also added some service pitches as well. One thing that was bothering me
was that we I went to restart the engine at reception the engine
management light remained on. The handbook just says to contact an agent
when you can so we will see what it’s like on the way home!
It seemed strange setting the van up as it’s so long since we have
done so. Had a bit of trouble with the TV connection as the F socket to
Co-Ax was missing. Obviously, a regular thing as the lady in reception
produced a bag full of the connectors and gave me one to repair the
bollard. Thinking we had everything sorted thoughts turned to dinner but
we have a menu malfunction. The food we had planned, despite having been
in the fridge and so should have defrosted hadn’t. We did have a tin of
baked beans but that hardly seemed enough for a growing lad! As luck
would have it there is an onsite Pizza seller on a Tuesday so Margaret
trotted along to the site entrance armed with a £10 note to buy an
Italiano Pizza. This turned out to be very nice and I think the red wine
went with it more so than the baked beans!!!
Wednesday 26th May. The improvement in the weather has
continued although far from hot it was a nice temperature for wandering
around Moreton in Marsh which we did today. For those that worry about
how far they have to walk it is half a mile from the site to the High
Street and circuit of the town to the railway station and back to the
site is two miles. Plenty of options to take a rest en route. There
seemed to be a few empty premises although some where having work done
on them. Another change we noticed was that the Co-Op have moved from
the High Street to what used the be the Budgens at the north end of the
town. Fortunately, they have retained the coffee shop so we enjoyed a
coffee although I got the wrong one but it was so noisy that it was hard
to hear yourself speak! I am not a lover of milky coffee but it was OK.
After gathering a bit of shopping, including some Elastoplast
as we discovered we had none in the van. We made our way down the other side of the High Street. We
looked at the bus times for Stow on the Wold which appear to be every
hour and a half. A possibility for tomorrow? Mind you we have not been
on a bus for well over a year! On the way back to the campsite we
stopped to look at the lambs in a field. One must have been very newly
born as there were signs which I won't go into but I have
obviously spent far too much time watching Call the Midwife!!!
Thursday 27th May. Dawned another nice day and if
anything, a bit warmer. Decided against a bus trip as Margaret was a bit
concerned about frequency of service for getting back and probably also
concerned that we have not been on a bus for so long! So decided
on a lazy day although we did have a wander around the site to observe
the changes since our last visit two years ago. There has been quite a
lot of change. Both motorhome service points now have open grill
disposal points. They have introduced some serviced pitches and some of
the other pitches have been reconfigured to upgrade them. There are
still some of the older smaller pitches around the site but I imagine
the upgrading is a rolling programme. The Club had previously added some
static accommodation and this is being augmented by the addition of what
looks like four Safari Tents.
I am sure I am not alone when checking into a CMC site that the
wardens seem to go into more detail about parking to the peg than
discussing COVID precautions! Whilst I am happy to oblige and always
park to the peg, after all I have been doing it for 40 years, many of my fellow travellers seem to totally ignore the
instruction. Given the time and effort to explain any sort of
enforcement seems totally missing! I suppose what I don’t understand is
why some seem to totally disregard what they
have been told, usually at length!!!!
Kessingland
Tuesday 8th June. Our second trip of the year coming fairly
close on the heels of our first one. We
seemed to have hit a patch of good weather and as we were getting ready
to leave it was sunny and hot. We are heading for the back of beyond, or
Kessingland as some people call it which is just south of Lowestoft on
the East Coast. We were away not long after 10.00am. The sat nav wanted
to take us via Norwich which I felt was a bit out of the way but
probably thinking about it I suspect there wasn’t much in it. The route
we took was via Bury St Edmunds with a fair slice of two-way road of
differing quality. Perhaps we will try the Norwich route on the way
back?
We arrived at the site just before 1.30pm and we were in a queue and as
we waited more arrived behind us. The site is pretty full but we managed
to find a hardstanding pitch near a service point so not far to go for
water and waste. After the long journey we were both a bit tired. I
don’t think we would be able to do the long journeys we once did on our
Continental trips. Last trip we had a menu malfunction, well, we
discovered when we came to cook our pizza this time that we appeared not to
have any gas! I checked both bottles which appeared to be full so my
concern was that the regulator was causing a problem. I decided to take
the hose off and wiggled it around and reattached it. Fortunately, this
seemed to work so it looks as if I need to at least buy new hoses.
Wednesday 9th June. We had a walk just in the local area of
back of beyond today. First out to the beach which consists of pebbles
rather than sand. Strange that a mile or two north there are some superb
sandy beaches. Someone had thoughtfully laid what looked like the belts
from conveyors which made walking on the stones so much easier. Back to
the land side of the beach. The café at the end of Beach Road seemed to
be doing good business as did the pub next door. Obviously, things are
not so straight forward with COVID as they have to have your details
before finding a socially distance spot for you. We wandered up to Wash
Lane where the buses depart from and a friendly local pointed out which
bus went where .
Back along Beach Road towards the sea. It’s difficult to quite establish
why Kessingland is here, perhaps initially because of fishing although
there is not much evidence to suggest this is anything other than a
minor contribution to the local economy. The notice board opposite the
pub does give a potted history of Kessingland. The houses along Beach Road
are a hotch potch of styles and periods. It looks as if it was very much
like Topsy and grew and grew. Seven years ago, when we last stayed here,
I took a photo of a lovely Clapper Board styled fisherman’s cottage. Sad
to say the same cottage, is today, in a very poor state of repair and
looks as though the plot is soon to be redeveloped. We have been treated
to another lovely sunny day today, although there was a stiff breeze
which could be chilly out of the sun.
Thursday 10th June. We made the decision to try and get to
Southwold today. This entailed returning to Wash Lane to get the bus.
This is the first time we will have been on a bus for getting on for 18
months so the decision wasn’t as easy as one would think. It turns out
that Kessingland has quite a selection of bus services to Lowestoft,
Norwich and Southwold. In the past one of the services used to come
right down to the beach opposite the Sailors Home but this stop now
refers you to the Wash Lane bus stop. It takes about 20 minutes to get
to Southwold.
A slight disappointment with the day was it was not as sunny as the
previous few days. One bonus was that it was more comfortable to wander
around. Southwold was surprisingly busy. First stop was for a coffee. We
found a café which we discovered was run by Tiptree, the jam people.
Refreshed we went off in search of the famous Lighthouse only to
discover we were going the wrong way!! What would we do without Google
Maps? Unusually for a lighthouse it is inland, or a few hundred metres
back from the sea shore. Adnams Brewery is in the centre of the town and
they do tours of the brewery should that float your boat. There is a
good range of shops in Southwold probably reflecting that some of the
locals are probably well heeled? Having done a bit of shopping we made
our way back to the bus. Slightly different route but I counted at least
three motorhomes heading for the town, goodness knows where they were
going to park?
Friday 11th June. A lazy day today after our busy day
yesterday. We have really not done much today beyond reading and sitting
around. We did have a wander around the site which is pretty much full.
We noticed that the smaller section of the site has a far better
motorhome waste point although I doubt many drive over there to empty
their waste!!! Whilst I appreciate that I could be biased it does seem
that there are an increasing number of motorhomes on site. I suspect
that it is not yet a 50/50 split but it is getting there. Also,
interesting to see a lot more, small camper vans.
Saturday 12th June.
Much sunnier today, although there was a brisk wind which made it
chilly out of the sun. We had a walk along the promenade in the
direction of Lowestoft, although to be fair we ran out of Promenade
quite quickly. Shame they had not continued it further. I am sure the
more robust walkers could make it along the shore all the way. We were
wondering what you call the strip of land between the sea wall and the
sea. It can hardly be called dunes as there is little, if any, sand!
Perhaps we should call it no mans lands? What at first glance looks like
waste land does have some interesting flora which adds to the interest.
I was fascinated by the wild lupins which grow better in this inhospitable environment than my pampered garden!
Having got to the end of the manmade promenade we decided to cut inland
up one of the set of steps rising from the beach level. This was unknown
territory with no obvious way of knowing where we were. This part of
Kessingland certainly belongs to the higgledy-piggledy school of
planning! There were Victorian Villas next to modern day bungalows. We
extracted ourselves from this cornucopia of housing design and made our
way down to Beach Road stopping en route for coffee and cake at the
Waterfront Café. It has been quite peaceful here at White House Beach
apart from the occasional double thud of a bird scarer, oh and perhaps I
should mention the Saturday night live music event at the pub!
Sunday 13th June. Our five-night stay has soon passed and its
time to go home. It is predicted to be very hot today although strangely
last night in the van was quite chilly. We left the site just before
10.00 am. We left the sat nav off and just followed the signs to
Norwich. When we got to the Norwich bypass there was a contraflow in
place which slowed things down a bit but it wasn’t long before we exited
onto the A11 that would take us all the way down to Cambridge. As we
have used this road quite a bit over the years, we have discovered a
small service station near Thetford which makes a useful homeward stop.
It has a Greggs and a Costa Coffee so the sausage roll and Americano
went down well. This route was ten miles longer than the outward journey
but being on better roads probably was a bit quicker but not by much!
Friday 9th
July. Since 2019 this will be our first multisite trip. Today we are
heading for the CMC Centenary Site at Bransgore in the New Forest. We
needed fuel so a quick stop at Tesco in Buckingham, which was en route.
Interesting to note that prices have increased by 10p a litre in two
months! Perhaps one of the penalties of travelling on a Friday is that
traffic can be heavy and that was certainly the case from Bicester
south. Not stand still, except for a few areas, but heavy nonetheless.
We made our usual stop at Sutton Scotney for a lunch stop. M3 and part
of the M27 quite slow. We had to override the sat nav to avoid being
taken around the houses and taken down narrow roads so against my better
judgement I decided to go via Lyndhurst which is renowned for traffic
queues. There was a queue but not that long and the delay was quite
short. Another eight miles and we arrived at the site.
The CMC
Centenary Site at Bransgore in the New Forest is a large site, 275
pitches! Disappointing that
less than half the pitches are hardstandings which meant we ended up on
a grass pitch. Fortunately, it seemed quite firm. Interesting site, very
large with not a lot of character. I suspect a destination for those
that want to stay a couple of weeks rather than a couple of days?
Saturday 10th
July. Today we were being treated by my sister to celebrate her 70th
birthday back in November 2020. Her and Neil had arranged to pick us up
at the campsite. Although no visitors were allowed on site, I did clear
it with the warden that they could come as far as reception. We were
heading for a restaurant called Pebble on the Beach at Barton on Sea not
that many miles from the campsite. This was the first time we had been
to a restaurant since my sister in laws 80th birthday in
January 2020! Whilst spacing had been meticulously worked out we were
far closer to more people than we had been in all that time. The meal
was very nice with good service and it was good to catch up in person.
This is our last day in the New Forest before moving onto the IOW
tomorrow.
Sunday 11th
July. Our ferry to the IOW was due to depart at 11.00am from Lymington,
so we were up fairly early.
In fact, a bit too early as we had to wait around to make sure we didn’t
arrive too soon at the ferry terminal as we were once turned away at
Southampton for doing that! Just as well we had a bit of time in hand as
somehow, I had got the A35 mixed up with the A337. The built in sat nav
was telling me to go one way but I was so fed up with it being wrong I
ignored it!!! After a few false starts, including turning round in a pub
carpark, we eventually found the right road. We got to the ferry
departure point with plenty of time to spare and we were allotted the
first place in one of the queuing lanes! Plenty of time for a coffee and
to watch the incoming ferry unload. Some cars went on ahead of us as
they were going on the higher deck but we were on pole position on the
lower deck. The crossing is just over half an hour. The exit down the
Lymington River is quite narrow and twisty and there was just about room
for the incoming ferry to pass. Somehow, we managed to navigate our way
across the Island to Newchurch where the Club site is situated.
This was our
first time using the Wightlink crossing to the Isle of Wight. Whilst it
was interesting to use a different route, I think any future crossings
will revert to the Southampton – East Cowes route. It is a bit longer
but generally it is also cheaper. It is difficult to understand why
ferry fares to the Island are so expensive, even more difficult to
understand why the shorter routes are even more expensive!! You almost
imagine the ticket clerks wearing balaclavas and a sawn-off shot gun by
their side!!! About time for a Bridge or a Tunnel?
I knew that
Southlands CMC Site had more grass pitches than hardstandings so wasn’t
hopeful that we would get one of the latter. Luckily there were still a
handful of hardstandings available to choose from. We must have tried
three or four to check for level just as Margaret was bagging our final
choice, we seemed to have competition from a caravanner. Fortunately,
they didn’t seem too bothered so we set ourselves up. We obviously
didn’t upset them as not long after the lady from the couple came across
and said they were going shopping and wondered if we needed anything,
which was exceeding nice of her and the first time I can recall that
happening.
Monday 12th
July. The morning after the day before. Despite much anticipation the
English Football Team failed in its bid to win its first major title
since the World Cup in 1966. They came close, managing to get to the
Finals of the Euro’s. They were up against an Italian team of
considerable renown. It all started well. Within two minutes England
were ahead but then began a two-hour assault by the Italians which ended
in a draw by extra time but ended in tears after a penalty shoot-out.
Gareth Southgate has a young team excellently groomed for better things
so who knows what will happen in the years to come?
Putting the
frustrations of the football behind us we had an important date today.
For the first time we are hiring a car whilst away in the motorhome. We
had arranged for Enterprise (they have a deal with the CMC) to pick us
up at the campsite to collect the car from Newport. We hired a fairly
new Vauxhall Corsa which whilst would not be a car I would buy it will
do for our four-day hire period. Given that the Isle of Wight has a
population of less than 150,000 there seems to be a lot of congestion on
the Island! Fortunately, I knew some of the roads from previous visits
so we headed for the Waitrose at East Cowes once we had extracted
ourselves from the labyrinth that is Newport. We returned via Ryde and
Sandown spotting some useful shopping locations en route. Weather thus
far on this holiday has not been brilliant but not a complete washout.
Tuesday 13th
July. At long last a day where we didn’t have to get up early for
something. Not that we stayed in bed to an unrespectable hour but it was
more like normal! This is the first full day with the car to explore the
Island. Our choice for today was Carisbrooke Castle which is quite near
to Newport. Unfortunately, Newport is in a terrible state due to road
works so trying to navigate your way around is troublesome. We
eventually woke up our, now, ancient TomTom
sat nav to rescue us from some large housing estate! We managed
to find the Castle carpark and the machine seemed to suggest you could
use cashless payment but this did not seem to be the case, luckily, I
had some coins.
Given the
strategic position of the location it is possible some form of
fortification existed during pre-Roman times. But it seems that it was
during the reign of Elizabeth 1st that serious work took
place because of the threat of a Spanish invasion. As castles go it is
in pretty good nick. You can walk round the walls. If the knees can
stand the climb! You can also get up into the Keep but we called it a
day once we had been around the walls. Carisbrooke Castle does have a
café although under covid it is restricted to takeaway. We had a
sandwich and a weak coffee! Ancient TomTom managed to get us out of
Newport ( which is almost impossible to avoid going anywhere on the
Island) and take us to a Morrisons which we discovered was fairly near
the campsite.
Wednesday 14th
July. Lovely and sunny today and getting hotter. The plan was to visit
Shanklin and Ventnor and then the south/western side of the Island.
Arrived in Shanklin and nowhere convenient to park but it looked lovely.
Similar with Ventnor. Some of the roads up and down to the beach would
put Alpe d'Huez to shame!!! Not only this but roadworks seem to be
everywhere, peak holiday season as well!! Thinking we would be due for
more of the same we changed plans and diverted to Godshill. A decent cup
of coffee this time! Just across the road is the famous Model Village
which is quite fun to look round and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.
Apparently, it was set up in 1952 and based on the real Godshill, there
is even a model within a model. On the way back we stopped at Arreton
Barns which is a collection of arty, crafty outlets and a pub. Not
really our sort thing.
Driving around the Island I noticed that Hydrangeas seem to thrive here. They appear in gardens everywhere. Even on the campsite there are a couple of really good examples. They seem to tend towards the blue/lilac/purple colouring. I don’t know if it is an old wives’ tale but I have heard that the minerals in the soil can affect the colour. I have a couple at home, in pots, but they tend towards the white/pink spectrum.
Thursday 15th
July. Our last full day with the car so we thought we would drive out to
the east of the Island. First, we had to fill up with fuel so we stopped
at the Morrisons not far from the site. The condition of hire is that
you return the car with the same amount of petrol as you started with,
in our case three quarters full. Thus far we have driven about 80 miles
so it has not gone down that far but I decided to top it up to full. 22
litres when the tank was more than half full, how big is the tank!!!
Full of confidence that we would meet our contractual requirements, we
set off for Bembridge. We even managed to find somewhere to park but
other than a view of Bembridge Life Boat Station and the beach there did
not seem much there. Although the day started nice and bright it was now
dull but still warm. Did we want to return to the van or continue to
Ryde. As we had already been to the latter on a different holiday, we
made our way back but called into the supermarket to stock up for our
final few days of our holiday.
Pros and cons
of car hire. As a motorhomer you either take the van off site or you
make use of other options like public transport. Others will chime in
and say what about bikes but our view is that we are getting too old for
that to be a worthwhile option. Having seen the roads and the lack of
options, in certain places, to park a motorhome, we decided that the IOW
would be the ideal spot to hire a car to get around. Our four days
has cost in the region of £200, so not the cheapest option by any
means. The hire company pick you up from the campsite and do the
opposite when you return the car so all very well organised. The
arrangement with the CMC and Enterprise gets you a small discount. The
car gives you the freedom to decide your own timetable so there are a
lot of pluses. In the past we have been spoilt by using public transport
which drops you off in the middle of everything so no need to worry
about parking. One thing I regret is not doing more research beforehand
on the parking options because I think we have lost out a bit by not
knowing where easy and available parking was. Two of the places we
visited, Carisbrooke Castle and Godshill both had good parking.
Unfortunately, the seaside towns did not. Would we hire a car again?
Wouldn’t rule it out but would balance the options more carefully. If we
found a campsite on the IOW with a good bus service from near its
entrance, I think that would have been a better option. Still looking
for that site!!!
Friday 16th
July. A lovely hot and sunny day today, in such a contrast to the
terrible and tragic weather they are having in Germany and surrounding
countries. We returned the hire car to Enterprise in Newport today. The
old TomTom helped us find the location but not without going around the
houses a few times!!! Perhaps time to invest in a new sat nav? We were a
bit early so had to hang around a bit before our lift was ready.
Interesting young lad who drove us back. He had finished his degree but
decided to stay on the Island, at least in the short term. We explained
how busy we were finding everywhere and he said that the Island is a lot
busier than normal for obvious reason. They even have difficulties
getting additional cars across from the mainland because of how busy the
ferries are. We covered a lot on the eight miles journey back to the
campsite! He mentioned that during COVID the Islanders were very opposed
to visitors but it seems this position persists whether there is a
medical emergency or not. It seems that many Islanders want to keep
things as they are and the thought that I suggested of a bridge he felt
would go down like a lead balloon!!! Currently the Island only has one
Member of Parliament but because of the population it really should have
a second seat which depending on who got elected could liven things up a
bit!!!
Saturday 17th
July. Our last full day on the IOW and a pretty lazy one at that. It has
been very hot and sunny. Two of our neighbours departed today. They were
soon replaced. Unfortunately, the motorhome that parked next to us
decided to pitch nose in which meant (being a UK side door) that when
they sat right opposite us so we had no privacy. I appreciate that they
may have wanted to face the sun but surprised they were selfish enough
to do that without due regard? In the afternoon we watched the new
qualifying system for the Sunday Silverstone GP. To liven things up they
have decided that qualifying is on the Friday and then teams have a
second bite of the cherry by taking part in a sprint race on the
Saturday which decides the final positions for the GP proper on Sunday.
There are a few more points available but only for the top three places.
As it happens Lewis was on poll after the Friday qualifying and Max,
second. For the Sprint race
Max out dragged Lewis to the first corner and won the three points and
is now on poll for the race. All a bit off but no doubt something we
will have to get used to?
Sunday 18th
July. A day of many journey segments! It was also very hot today. We
left Southlands at around 10.20am, our ferry was at 12.05pm so we didn’t
want to arrive too early. We arrived just before midday to find the
previous ferry had already left so we got in the queue of motorhomes and
caravans. Even on deck there was little rest bite from the heat even
with a pleasant Solent breeze. Once ashore we had to find our way out of
Lymington as we were going by a different route from our journey here.
We found the road to Brockenhurst and Lyndhurst and onward to the M27.
Edging through Brockenhurst my nearside wing mirror
clipped something, probably a parked car, but it was impossible
to stop. Looking at the mirror a while later there seemed no massive
damage so hopefully the same can be said of the vehicle I hit?
The queue
coming into Lyndhurst from the motorway was massive, so glad we were
going the other way! A short stop at Rownhams Services which was
absolutely crowded. The final part of the journey was to a site near
Stockbridge. This site is not open to the public but is part of a large
farming estate owned by our former employer. There are holiday lodges
and ready erected tents plus a camping site. The access road was a bit
hairy, nearly two miles of one-way road although there did seem to be a
few passing places, we were lucky in that we didn’t have to put it to
the test!
Monday 19th
July. Still very hot and difficult to sleep with daytime temperatures of
around 30 degrees which does not offer much chance of cooling down
overnight. Most of the time we have been managing with the MaxxAir which
has been very good but even that has its limitations as the only two
options are to extract air or draw air in and if both sets of air are
hot you get my drift!!! We do have an additional small tower fan which
we also bring into operation on really hot days. Pretty lazy day here
today, mainly watching other campers dismantle their tents and new ones
set up! The trouble with nice weather is that everyone wants to BBQ and
with very little wind the stench of smoke gets everywhere. The site does
have a restaurant which last night we used for a takeaway and tonight as
a sit in restaurant.
Tuesday 20th
July. Time to make our way home. Escape from Leckford was fine until we
got to the village where we found a large lorry delivering something,
fortunately there was just room for us to squeeze by. We re-joined the
A34 a junction further north than where we left. The rest of the journey
was uneventful and there wasn’t even a queue south of Bicester to get
onto the M40! The last few times we have come this way the sat nav wants
to take us to the west of Bicester but we have always stuck to the
bypass to the east. This time we turned left just as we were entering
the built-up area which took us on a good road all the way around the
outside of Bicester so we will certainly try that again. The original
Bicester bypass is a bit awkward in my view as you can get tangled up
with traffic for Bicester Village and the large new Tesco supermarket.
Our final task was to fill up with fuel at Wolverton before the final
two miles to home.
Broadway
Tuesday 10th August. Thought we would grab a few days away in
August even though we knew it would be busy. We are heading for the CMC
site at Broadway. We were away by 10.30am. As we crossed the roundabout,
I looked down on the A5 dual carriageway and was surprised how little
traffic. How wrong could I be! A little further on and we came to a
grinding halt. There was no obvious reason for the delay except volume
of traffic. My best guess would be that they were diverting traffic off
the M1 at either junction 13 or 14 via the A5 to junction 15. We
eventually got clear of the queues and headed out to Buckingham and
Finmere before cutting across country to Adderbury and Deddington.
Making a stop, as seems usual now, at the lay-by with Buzzy Beans Coffee
which seems more popular than ever! Onward to Chipping Norton and Morton
in Marsh for the final stretch of the journey to Broadway. Before
arriving at the site, we had to negotiate Fish Hill down into the
village which is pretty steep whether you are going down or up! Got to
the site at around 1.15pm. We found a pitch near a service point which
we like.
Wednesday 11th August. Been an odd day weather wise, often
dull but with some sun. We walked into Broadway today. It was packed and
the prospect of getting a coffee seemed slim as everywhere seemed full.
We walked up through the arcade that leads to the car park and there was
a café there called “Guilt Trip” run by someone who would not be out of
place at a Festival! The real guilt trip was that the only food sold was
doughnuts!!! When in Rome I suppose. Both coffee and doughnut were
excellent. We wandered across the road to where the Budgens supermarket
once was but like in Moreton in Marsh it seems to have been taken over
by the Co-Op, perhaps this is more widespread than I realise. On the way
into Broadway, we noticed a large new medical surgery was in the process
of being built on what appeared a green field site. Just wondered if
this is just the start of further development towards the campsite?
Thursday 12th August. Today we wandered up to the
restored/replaced station at Broadway which is just across the road from
the campsite. When we were last here, about five years ago, it was still
work in progress. Broadway is the northern limit of the Gloucester
Warwickshire Steam Railway. This gives a restored length of track of
about 14 miles. It’s terminal at Cheltenham, near the Racecourse, means
that you can travel between two Club sites by steam train should you
wish. We did wonder if we should go for a ride into Cheltenham but
decided that £25 per person was a bit steep! We did have a coffee in the
station buffet as a small means of support. There is more track that can
be restored beyond Broadway. Whilst that track is currently route
protected you get the impression that protection won’t last much longer?
The charity that runs the railway don’t feel they are in a position to
take on the responsibility at the moment because of the recent
restoration to Broadway and the fact that COVID has robbed them of much
needed funds in the last 18 months. Fingers crossed that something can
be worked out so that future restoration can go ahead. Back at the site
we walked up to the old Goods Shed, which many years ago used to be the
entrance into the site. You pulled into the Goods Shed to book in! There
are a few pitches near to the railway line for enthusiasts.
Quite a few people left the site today but they have soon been replaced.
Looking out the window at the comings and goings it did make me think
what it might be like in 10/15 years’ time. By then
electric cars will be the norm
and who knows how petrol and diesel will be treated in terms of tax?
Will there be electric cars that the man in the street can afford that
will also tow a caravan? Motorhomes are an even more uncertain future
because currently electric vans that can be converted are very expensive
and have relatively short ranges. Will we see a general decline in
touring as those now retired folk, ourselves included, have given up the
hobby? It must be a difficult one for the two main Clubs, especially
when it comes to future investment.
Friday 13th August. A pretty lazy day today. The weather was
dull for most of the morning but did perk up in the afternoon. Apart
from routine things we did drag ourselves over to the Garage, opposite
the site, as we needed some milk. Normally such a requirement would be
met by site reception but I am not sure that some site wardens have
bothered this year? We were able to sit out in the late afternoon sun
which was nice. Currently reading a book about an ex-Nurse who has gone
to live in Puglia in southern Italy. As one of our favourite countries
we would love to go to Italy again but we are increasing feeling that
our days of long trips to Europe are not going to return and reading
about them might be as far as we get!
Saturday 14th August. A dull start to the day which lasted until we got home when the sun came out!!! We were up and away reasonable early. We noticed quite a few “classic” sports cars in and around Broadway so I imagine there must have been some sort of gathering? When either arriving or departing from Broadway, Fish Hill is always in the consciousness, being, will the brakes hold out going downhill or the clutch survive going up!!! In our early years of touring, it was an influence on whether we went to Broadway! Fortunately, the Pug seems to have plenty of power and we even had to overtake a tanker going up the hill. The rest of the journey was uneventful. We noticed Buzzy Beans was still busy as we passed by. More traffic as we approached MK but at least we were on familiar territory. It seems to take longer to get the car off the drive and the back gates open than it does to get the van back into the garden. We both seem a bit exhausted, not quite sure why as we haven’t done that much. Perhaps it’s just the change of location and routine?
Worthing
Sunday 12th September. Mainly a sunny day with pleasant, if
not hot, temperatures. We are heading for the CMC site called Northbrook
Farm just north of Worthing today for seven nights. We got away around
10.00am but had to detour via our eldest son to drop off a key. We
joined the M1 at junction 14. It looks as if the conversion to a “Smart
Motorway” is almost complete. We decided to travel on a Sunday because
we thought the traffic would be quieter. Unfortunately, that proved to
be not the case! The M1 was busy but the M25 was at a standstill going
in the other direction. We stopped at Cobham Services but it was pretty
busy and where we parked was so far from the shops we didn’t bother with
coffee. A fairly decent caravan parking area although we pulled through
the regular parking. We left the M25 at junction 9 and headed down the
A24 which varies in quality. Probably thinking of
a different route back?
When we arrived at the site, I was surprised how busy it was given that
Northbrook Farm does not have a toilet block or at least a functioning
one. Apparently, it suffered from subsidence and given that the site is
on a short lease, reviewed each year, it is not worth the Club putting
in the investment. The site is in two parts and it seems the local
Council want to develop the front section for more houses and it is
rumoured that they are willing to sell the main part to the Club for
redevelopment.
When we were setting up, we couldn’t get the electrics to work. The
bollard was a new type where you have to the reset the circuit breakers.
I was concerned that I had turned off the electricity to the van next
door, which I had!!! By the time I got back from reception, the guy next
door had sorted us out. It seems that the action of disconnecting your
electric lead will trip the circuit, so we had better get used to
resetting when arriving on a site with these new type of bollards. What
is a little confusing, at least to the non-electrical professional, is
that when the circuit breakers show red they are on and green when off?
Intuitively one would have thought it would be the other way round but I
suppose the rational is that red indicates live and green means off? Oh,
for the plug in and twist bollards!!!
Monday 13th September. The day dawned bright but with quite a
bit of cloud cover. We were a bit lazy first thing with no rush to get
up and out. The trials of the M25 must have exhausted us!!!. Strangely,
we saw on the news that several groups of protestors had reeked chaos on
the M25 today by setting up protests at several junctions around the
Orbital Motorway!!! Perhaps it wasn’t so bad yesterday?
After breakfast we decided to have a wander around the site which is
surprisingly large. We also wandered outside the gate to check where the
buses depart from which is conveniently close to the site. We also
worked out the footpath that would take us to a nearby garden.
It was nice sunny in the afternoon so we sat out. Not hot but perfectly
pleasant. A few more have arrived on site today to replace those that
left earlier today. Seems to be a few outfits here that are perhaps
owned by people who don’t have bricks and mortar and perhaps move around
from place to place where they can. Northbrook Farm has the advantage of
being quite cheap, about £14.50 a night with the VAT reduction so is no
doubt attractive. One guy near us with a large Hobby caravan had
obviously been parked up somewhere and been a victim of a graffiti
attack. Yesterday he was applying a large Road Runner sticker to the
side of the van to cover it up! Next door to the site is a Tennis Club.
We watched a motorhome arrive in its car park and then leave as soon as
he arrived. He had clearly mistaken the Tennis Club entrance for the
campsite entrance as minutes later he turned up at reception.
Tuesday 14th September. A very wet day today which made us
decide to have a quiet day in the van. The sun did make an effort to
come out later in the day.
Wednesday 15th September. It was a dryer day today and we had
more sun. We decided to walk to the local Tesco Extra which is about
three quarters of a mile away from the site as we needed to top up
supplies. The site has thoughtfully provided instructions of the
quickest walking route. It is a large and spacious shop with other
outlets. We split the load between us and made our way back to the site.
When loaded with shopping it seems much longer!!!
Thursday 16th September. The day dawned bright and sunny and
with the feel that it was going to be a warm day. For some reason we
were a bit behind with our preparations for the day so decided rather
that heading for Worthing on the bus we would instead walk to Highdown
Gardens which is not far from the site. I say not far but it depends if
you misunderstand the instructions provided by the campsite. We walked
too far beyond where we should have turned right to cross a road to take
us to the Gardens. There was further confusion because we seemed to have
to transverse a Civic Amenity Tip with lorries going in and out all the
time. It turned out that just to the left of the tip was a path leading
up to the Gardens. I say up and now understand the meaning of Highdown
as it was a steady uphill climb. At the top there were wonderful views
out over the surrounding countryside with the odd glimpse of the sea in
the far distance. However, none of this was appreciated until we had
regained our oxygen levels!
Highdown Gardens was the creation of Sir Frederick and Lady Sybil Stern
between 1909 and 1967. The Gardens are free to visit and not overly
large. Many parts of the Gardens would not be suitable for people with
severe mobility problems but the central access would be suitable even
for wheelchairs. For those that don’t arrive by foot there is a car
park. Next to the Gardens is the Highdown Restaurant and Tea Rooms where
we refreshed ourselves after our mountaineering exploits. As is always
the case going back seems so much quicker. Not sure if that was because
it was downhill or we just knew where we were going?
Friday 17th September. Just shows how fickle the weather
forecast can be as we were promised a sunny day today. It did come
eventually but not until later in the day. We took the bus into Worthing
today. As we have been here nearly a week, we thought we should at least
try! Reasonably comfortable on the bus but is seems a fair proportion
not wearing masks, mainly but not exclusively people of a younger age!
We alighted in the Town Centre which is surprisingly near the sea front.
Worthing seemed quite busy and had a good selection of shops. Although
the likes of the old Debenhams are a bit of a blot on the landscape.
There is work going on in the centre and I noticed that, what once must
have been a shop, was being converted into apartments. What really
caught my eye was the promise of a free electric bike on purchase! Quite
an effort had been made with flowers around various lampposts.
We wandered down to the seafront and found the Pier which we walked
along. Piers are always a good place to get a look back at the town and
along the coast. There was some interesting art work along the centre of
the Pier celebrating various elements of the Town. They looked a bit
like stained glass but could have just been painted glass. Because it
was cloudy, although quite warm, we really didn’t see Worthing in its
full glory which is a shame. After our trip to the Pier, we crossed the
road to the M&S. Is this
the only M&S on a seafront anywhere? We were really more interested in
their café where I enjoyed a bacon ciabatta and a strong coffee whereas
Margaret opted for lemon drizzle cake and a cappuccino. A bit of
shopping before catching the bus back to the site where by now
miraculously the sun had come out!
Saturday 18th September. We must have been tired as we slept
in quite late, well quite late compared to home! It’s been a lovely
sunny day today although it starts to cool down around 4.00pm unless you
happen to be in full sun. This is our last full day here in Worthing so
we have to think about preparing for the journey home, so packing things
away when we can. Otherwise, the rest of the day was spent enjoying the
lovely weather. This is the second time this year we have spent a week
in one place, unusual for us. It does allow you a bit more freedom as it
gives you a few more options. So, if the weather is not so good one day
you can put it off to the next! Been thinking about the route home as we
don’t relish the idea of heading back to the M25. The only real
alternative is via the A27 to Portsmouth which can be a notorious road
in its own right. From there we would join the M27/M3 and finally the
A34 for the journey north. It’s about 30 miles longer.
Sunday 19th September. We were up at 7.00am and off site by
about 8.30am. The chosen route worked well despite being busy for most
of the way but no hold ups. We had not realised that our leaving date
coincided with the Goodwood Revival Meeting. There was a bit of a queue
to get off the dual carriageway but nothing that delayed us. We
stopped for a coffee about half way and filled up with fuel just before
getting home at around 13.00pm so quite a long journey! So far this year
we have spent 30 nights in the motorhome, way more than the 8 we did
last year!
Henley on Thames
Sunday 10th October. We are off to Henley on Thames today.
Originally, we only managed to book three days but would have preferred
more. When the fuel panic started about two weeks ago, I noticed that
suddenly there was masses of availability so took the opportunity to add
another two days to our original booking. I was chatting to the wardens
when we got to the site and they said that it seemed to spook quite a
few people with some even cutting their stays short.
The last time we came to Henley we used the M40 and arrived at the site
from the direction of Marlow. This time we used a more cross-country
route via Oxford through Shillingford and Benson. I seem to recall that
we used to tow this way with the caravan. It was a fairly relaxed route
and once off the main roads there was not much traffic. We arrived at
the site just after midday. I always have two fears about this site and
they are that we will either have to use a grass pitch or we will have
to use one of the pitches backing onto the notoriously noisy road.
Fortunately, there was plenty of choice and we found a nice hardstanding
in the middle of the site near a service point. I do seem to be having a
problem reversing onto a pitch, as Margaret likes to remind me! Flaying
arms don’t mean a lot from the drivers, seat!!! No issue with getting
next to the peg, just lining the van up level with the side of the
pitch! By the time we got set up the sun was out and when sheltered from
the wind it was quite warm. Warm enough, it seems, for some men to strip
off to the waist, probably trying to build up their vitamin D levels
ready for winter!!!
Monday 11th October. It eventually turned into a nice sunny
day, although not as warm as yesterday. The penalty for sunny days at
this time of year is that the nights are correspondingly colder!
We walked into Henley on Thames today. A walk we have done many
times before but we are both convinced the distance is getting longer!!!
Checking my walking App, we appear to have walked over three miles today
which is not bad for us. Henley is an attractive Thames side town but
busy with traffic and people. After a coffee and a bit of shopping in
Waitrose we headed back. En route we called into the Swiss Farm campsite
as Margaret wanted to check out the shop. We also noticed they had a
nice café which we might try if its open to non-residents. It was just
about warm enough in the sun to sit outside to eat our lunch. One of the
things we have noticed about the sites we have visited this year is the
lack of a book exchange, obviously a COVID thing?
Henley Four Oaks did have the
start of book loans so we contributed another eight books which doubled
the selection! Margaret has read so many books over the pandemic we
almost have a room full at home!
Tuesday 12th October. Weather a bit less predictable today as
more cloud but we did also see some nice sunshine. Overnight it was
another cold one and I notice, as we sleep with our heads against the
driver and passenger seats, how much cold there is coming from the floor
area. When we have the heating on, we don’t notice it as the vent is at
floor level next to the seats. For two nights running I have been up
about 5.00am to put the heating on!
We had a pretty lazy start to the day but after a late breakfast we
decided to have a walk down to the river. We had noticed a path on our
way into Henley, opposite the Rugby Club, yesterday. It goes down the
side of Phyllis Court. After the rugby pitches it opens out into a
riverside meadow and you can see Temple Island in the distance. On this
side of the river there is no access into the town. Disappointingly
there was not much activity on the river, only a rather smart launch and
a single sculler. I was surprised not to see any hire boats plying up
and down the river.
On the way back to the van we stopped off at the Swiss Farm campsite to
use their café and shop. Non-residents of the campsite are
welcome. We had a nice coffee and sandwich which saved us the bother
when we got back to the van.
Wednesday 13th October. There was a bit of rain overnight but
the day started dry and remained so. Less wind today so it felt a bit
warmer. Around 1.30pm we walked into Henley to have a meal out, not
something we have done very much in the last two years! For years I have
collected Tesco Club Card points which we used, initially, to pay for
our Eurotunnel crossings. Since Brexit we have not been abroad so have
accumulated more points than we can usefully use!!! Before COVID I
swapped some of my vouchers for a Zizzi voucher but the pandemic rather
put an end to their use. Full credit to Tesco as they extended the
expiry date more than once. Today we actually got the opportunity to
eventually use them. Before we left home, I had noticed there was a
Zizzi in Henley so took the vouchers with us. We still had to contribute
to the cost and probably enough to pay for a meal next door at the
Wetherspoons, but preferred the Italian menu. Being quite full the
prospect of the walk back to the site did not appeal so we hopped on the
bus that took us most of the way back to the site!!!
Thursday 14th October. Couldn’t make up our minds what to do
today so decided to have a lazy day. Early on it was a bit difficult to
judge the weather which actually turned out not to be too bad. At least
we got a chance to sit out in the sun.
At times this week the site has seemed not very full but we have had
more arrivals today. Another odd thing I noticed was that earlier in our
stay there did not seem to be many dogs which is unusual for a Club site
but today that seems to have changed!
Friday 15th October. Fairly dull start to the day which also
meant it had been a bit warmer overnight. We managed to get away not
long after 9.30am and the journey, back via the way we came , was
uneventful. We didn’t bother to fill up with fuel when we got near to
home as we had only done about 130 miles. Waiting at home is a Fiamma
Back Box to be fixed to the van and once done Margaret will insist that
we test its integrity. We will probably fill up after a test trip.